Project Description

 Lochgelly High Seniors Support Primary School Literacy   

P7 pupils at Lochgelly West Primary School are currently taking part in a joint “Core Skills Transition Project” to equip them with an understanding of the employability skills that are embedded within lessons at Lochgelly High School.  

To improve collaboration between the schools, and to provide the young learners with employability and CV-enhancing opportunities, Lochgelly High School was approached to be part of a “Tutoring Programme” for aspiring teachers and childcare providers. This programme also assisted in the longer-term transition from primary to secondary for the learners involved at Lochgelly West. 

Throughout the third term, the learners from Lochgelly High visiting the primary school every Friday for an hour. They were matched with two learners from Lochgelly West Primary, where they were providing one to one support to individuals to improve their literacy. This provided our learners with the skills, confidence and experience required to kick-start their careers in education. All of the learners involved are interested in a career in teaching, childcare or social work. 

Not only did the experience provide Lochgelly West learners with the opportunity to improve their reading, writing and overall literacy, it inspired learners at Lochgelly High School, and allowed them to become more certain in their anticipated career pathway. This also gave the S6 learners the opportunity to enhance their UCAS applications, by providing a fantastic experience that aligns to the demands of a PGDE in Primary Education course. It also builds the foundation for our S5 learners to develop more opportunities as they progress into S6. 

The participants from Lochgelly High School were praised for being engaging, dedicated and enthusiastic each week they were involved. Below are some quotes from the learners who participated: 

Maisy Drummond said, “I enjoyed my time spent volunteering in Lochgelly West Primary School so much that it influenced my career path to become a primary teacher. This opportunity gave me the work experience I needed to put into my personal statement which gave me an advantage for getting into University.” 

Macy McShane said, “I really enjoyed working with the children at LWPS. It felt really good to help the young children with their reading and seeing them improve every week was just amazing!” 

Learners in the caption are as follows (from left to right), Joanne Taylor, Maya Szary, Katie Bell, Macy McShane (Standing)